


Early Dawn

by hookedonthesky



Category: Les Misérables - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Dark, Death, Enjolras/Grantaire if you squint - Freeform, Gen, Manipulation, Minor Montparnasse/Éponine Thénardier, No Dialogue, Robbery, Sex, Violence, mentions of - Freeform, vaguely
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-15
Updated: 2018-12-15
Packaged: 2019-09-19 11:04:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,212
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17000364
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hookedonthesky/pseuds/hookedonthesky
Summary: The life and death of Montparnasse.orThe vaguely modern AU of the birth of Patron-Minette.





	Early Dawn

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Mauness](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mauness/gifts).



> I have no idea what happened to this story. I hope the prompter is at least kinda happy with it.
> 
> Enjoy!

Montparnasse killed for the first time when he was fifteen. It was not something he had planned, nor something for which he spared much thought, afterwards. It was for survival, and if he hadn't stepped up, he would have been the one lying dead in that alley. There was no room for guilt in his life, not if he wanted to prosper.

There was room for cruelty, though. And power. Wouldn't it make anyone feel powerful, to hold someone's life in their hands? To snuff it out, like it was worth nothing? Up until then, he hadn't had much, to his name. But standing over his second victim ever, Montparnasse wondered. How much are lives worth?

Of course, that wasn't the only currency in which he dabbled. He started out on his own, pickpocketing and stealing when he had the chance. He stole enough for survival, and then he stole more. Wealth was also a type of strength, and he wanted to be  _ powerful. _

He never knew his parents - like many urchins, he was born and raised on the streets. But he had soon risen above them, using his street smarts and his charm and good looks to better his circumstances. And he firmly believed that he was  _ better.  _ He was worth  _ more.  _ And he would prove it, to himself and to everyone else. So he stole and he fought and he stepped over those less fortunate. And he  _ succeeded. _

Had he ever felt guilt, you may ask. Only once in his life did he wonder if there was something like a conscience to him. Well, a girl asked him, and he took a second to think about it. He didn't spend more than that on the question, but the girl kept his attention a bit longer. She was a priest's daughter and she caught Montparnasse red-handed, stealing. She started talking to him, and all the while he clutched a knife behind his back ready to plunge it into her if she tried to call for someone. But she never did. Apparently, she was a bit of a dreamer, and she saw his good looks and a “bad hand that life dealt him” and thought she could help him. That she could change him. They met after that, many times. She talked to him about sins, and recited verses from the bible and claimed she “loved” him. But what are sins worth to a man like him? He reveled in sinning, thrived in chaos and debauchery, and got high on killing. And so, instead of her saving him, he corrupted her.

The manipulation was easy, surprisingly easy. She thought she was falling in love, and she might have been, and he used it. He introduced her to pleasures of the flesh, taught her to love everything she had been preaching against. She fell lower and lower, all the while thinking she was living a fantasy. Finally, surveying her, a priest's daughter brought down to the depths of hell, he felt powerful again. It felt like a victory, having so much power over another human being. He discarded her, in the end, when there was nothing else he could do to her, as he had completely destroyed the person she had been.

And that girl wasn't the first nor the last person he tainted in such a way. There were countless girls (and men, he wasn't picky) that he seduced. Sometimes, it was just for the sex, although even then there was an element of power to it. And sometimes, he destroyed the other person completely, just to feel the rush of it. So yes, to answer your question, he never really did feel any guilt.

And so he continued, stealing whatever he could, and killing when it struck his fancy. But, he wasn't alone for long. He was joined by others through circumstance.

He met Babet first. Montparnasse saw him selling cure-alls and crystals at a fair once, and was quickly fascinated. Not at the audacity of it, no - people were gullible, and Montparnasse knew many that took advantage of that, but at his persuasive abilities. Babet seemed weak, at first glance, thin and lean, with bones seeming almost brittle. But there was a doggedness to him, a kind of perseverance that went deep. And people left his stall trusting him completely, and believing that even if the product didn't work, it was somehow their fault for not using it correctly, and not his. He seemed scholarly and wise, and he claimed he was a chemist, even though the University where he apparently finished his studies changed often.

Montparnasse had been preparing for a job that was turning out to be two-man (persuading the wealthy to separate from their riches was always difficult without a solid distraction), and Babet was happy to join. It soon turned into a partnership, a business partnership if you will. There was no friendship, and barely any trust between them. But they knew each other, were cut from the same cloth in some ways, and it worked.

Montparnasse was close to dissolving their collaboration, once, when Babet mentioned his wife and children. There was no place for family nor any type of compassion in the lives they were leading, Montparnasse was sure. They made you weak, made you falter, and he wouldn't risk his life (or his assets), on it. But there weren't that many mentions of the family, and Babet always talked about them vaguely, in past tense, seeming quite blasé about it. Montparnasse soon gathered that they weren't in the picture anymore, for one reason or another, and that was that.

Montparnasse and Babet worked well together. Babet did not like to get his own hands dirty, but he didn't seem to mind the killing. He seemed to revel in it, even, and Montparnasse was happy to deliver. They didn't make a habit of unnecessary killing, usually, as they didn't want to draw too much attention to themselves (yet), but sometimes Babet asked him to kill in a certain way, or use one of his concoctions on the victim.

There was a sick fascination in Babet's eyes at those times, an almost scholarly curiosity marred by something darker. But Montparnasse didn't ask, and Babet didn't explain, and they always continued. Montparnasse didn't care much, and the rush of strength, of power he got after every kill was worth  _ everything.  _ So yes, Montparnasse and Babet worked quite well together.

However, after a couple of close calls, Montparnasse realised that they were missing something. With the two of them, they could rob (and kill) bigger targets, but the risks were greater as well. And so he recruited Gueulemer.

They met Gueulemer while running away from a job that they escaped by the skin of their teeth. Montparnasse had had his arm grazed by a bullet, and was swearing up a storm, when they almost ran into Gueulemer. He was huge, built like a statue and muscles bulging. Montparnasse then and there decided he'd rather have him on their side, than against. It wasn't hard, getting him to help them. Money was always a good motive, and Gueulemer seemed like he was between jobs (or like hadn't had one recently, and didn't plan to get one soon). And so there were three.

Gueulemer wasn't the smartest, but he was resourceful, and had a vicious streak a mile long. He was their muscle, as well as their from-afar-assassin, as he was mighty good with a gun (even if he never said where or how he learned). With Gueulemer, from a pair of small (but bloodthirsty) robbers, they became a successful gang. They “earned” enough to hire underlings now, when they needed them, but it was always the three of them that stayed. Well, until Claquesous.

They were becoming famous in certain circles, and that was probably how Claquesous found them. One day he appeared in one of their meetings, and declared he would join them. Montparnasse didn't trust him. Well, he didn't trust anyone really, but he especially didn't trust Claquesous. He was always shrouded in one mask or another, always spoke with a different voice or intonation. Montparnasse couldn't get a read on him, and he didn't like it. Sometimes he seemed like a thug, sometimes he seemed cultured, and sometimes he was just… very vague. But, he was useful. He was full of information, he could get them anything they needed. And he was smart - he gave good input during planning, which did save them a couple of times. So, he stayed. Montparnasse kept an eye on him, a much closer eye than on the other two (when he could, Claquesous was slippery as an eel), but it didn't seem like he planned to betray them. And even if he did, Montparnasse was prepared. He was prepared for betrayal from any of them, he was ready to cut his losses and save his skin. After all, their partnership, while useful, wasn't based on trust nor any type of familial feelings. And he would survive, and succeed. Whatever it took.

Soon they became quite famous, or, well, infamous. Their gang grew, full of temporary thugs and underlings, with four of them as leaders. People started calling them “Devils of Crime”, and, while Montparnasse thought it had a nice ring to it, it wasn't quite what he thought would be a good gang name. So they became Patron-Minette, the “early dawn”.

They had dealings with many other gangs in the area, one of which were the Thénardiers. Thénardiers were one of the most known ones, and Montparnasse had mixed feelings about them. On the one hand, he on principle disliked anyone that could in any way rival his own gang. But on the other, he simply couldn't not be awed by their gal. They had some of the strangest schemes and robberies, that varied in success from wildly successful to how-the-hell-aren't-they-already-deep-in-jail. They made crime a family business, although it only cemented Montparnasse’s stance that family was worth nothing.

And that's where he met Éponine. As the daughter of Mr. Thénardier, a pretty black haired girl, he didn't spare her much thought at first. But as their dealings with the Thénardiers grew, and as he saw Éponine more often, he found himself learning more about her. She was smart, and scrappy, and  _ very  _ resourceful. And Montparnasse found that he respected her. Actually, Éponine might have been the only person he really respected.

Their relationship was a strange one. She didn't love him, and Montparnasse for sure didn't love her, but there was still  _ something.  _ He didn't feel the need to try to corrupt her (he doubted he even could), he didn't try to exert power over her or control her, like he did others he went to bed with. And even if he left some failsafes in place, he still trusted her with things he had never told anyone else. Still, there wasn't even an illusion of exclusivity. He kept his slew of conquests, and he had a suspicion she was pining over someone. Nevertheless, they met from time to time, and it worked.

In the end, it was Éponine who told him about a protest a group of students was planning. She mentioned it in passing, but it sparked his interest. He knew the circle of students Éponine sometimes frequented, he was aware there was a couple of rich boys in there. And chaos at a protest seemed like a place of interesting opportunities… Who would have thought that it was the beginning of the end for him?

In hindsight, he would have brought someone, he wouldn't have gone alone. In hindsight, he wouldn't have gone at all.  

The protest was, of course, chaos. But, Montparnasse thrived in chaos. He snuck around, moving with the crowd, moving in such a way not to garner attention, and looked for a likely victim. 

A young man caught his attention. 

He seemed almost lost, not really moving with the crowd but stumbling along. He had expensive clothes, although badly wrinkled, and his dark, curly hair was matted to his forehead. He appeared to be looking for someone, but then decided to take a breather and turned into a small alleyway. That's when Montparnasse struck. 

The scuffle was short, the youth wasn't prepared at all and Montparnasse had years of experience. He managed to drop his gun near the entrance of the alley when the boy flailed, but he still had his knife. He had planned just to rob a couple of unsuspecting students, but this opportunity was too good. And he hadn't murdered in a while… 

He was about to plunge the knife into the boy bellow him, when he heard a gunshot. His… stomach was wet? He looked up, and there was another young man, blond haired this time, in the entrance of the alley. 

_ Drip _

Montparnasse coughed.

_ Drip _

The young man seemed… shocked? Horrified? Scared? Montparnasse usually enjoyed seeing those emotions in someone, but… he… couldn't summon enjoyment… For some reason? 

_ Drip _

Why… hadn't he killed the boy bellow him? The knife was in his hand, right? He just had to plunge down, and he would… feel powerful again. Right? 

_ Drip _

The newcomer was… holding his gun? 

_ Drip _

What? 

_ Drip _

**Author's Note:**

> Sooo... This completely got out of my control. I wanted to write something different, but this is how it turned out and I didn't have time to change it. I am not completely satisfied with the flow, I feel like it goes too fast and I might at some point come back to change it.
> 
> I hope you liked the Grantaire/Enjorlas hint at the end! I actually feel like this could be a part of a greater universe, where the main story is the Grantaire/Enjorlas one, and this one is just a kind of behind the scenes.
> 
> [My tumblr](http://hookedonthesky.tumblr.com/), if anyone's interested.


End file.
